Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between the United Kingdom and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,526 a month against $2,457 in the United Kingdom, rent and utilities included – about $11,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

119

Cost of Living Index in the United Kingdom
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United Kingdom Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index

Jump to prices

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,457

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,526

/mo nomad

😐 Solo nomad: The United Kingdom is 30.6% more expensive than Istanbul without rent, and 61% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: The United Kingdom is 32.8% more expensive than Istanbul without rent, and 41.9% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.38 £16.16

$11.88 ₺585

79.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.5 £63.9

$55.1 ₺2,714

53.37%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.54 £7.96

$9.14 ₺450

15.32%

Cappuccino

$4.85 £3.66

$4.24 ₺209

14.39%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.53 £1.91

$1.75 ₺86.0

44.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.84 £1.39

$0.54 ₺26.83

240.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.81 £5.14

$4.69 ₺231

45.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.51 £4.92

$5.97 ₺294

9.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.68 £1.27

$1.26 ₺62.1

33.33%

White Bread (500g)

$1.71 £1.29

$0.95 ₺46.81

80.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.25 £1.70

$2.31 ₺114

-2.60%

Eggs

$3.96 £2.99

$2.47 ₺122

60.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.53 £7.20

$10.55 ₺520

-9.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.97 £6.77

$5.60 ₺276

60.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.70 £11.11

$21.21 ₺1,045

-30.69%

Apples (1kg)

$2.91 £2.20

$1.93 ₺95.1

50.78%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 £1.22

$2.29 ₺113

-29.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.86 £2.16

$1.28 ₺63.1

123.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.44 £2.60

$1.84 ₺90.8

86.96%

Potato (1kg)

$1.72 £1.30

$0.67 ₺32.86

156.72%

Onion (1kg)

$1.54 £1.16

$0.59 ₺29.31

161.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.23 £0.93

$1.33 ₺65.4

-7.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.65 £1.24

$0.59 ₺29.10

179.66%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.34 £17.63

$2.36 ₺116

888.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.71 £8.10

$13.47 ₺664

-20.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.01 £2.27

$2.42 ₺119

24.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.30 £2.50

$3.54 ₺174

-6.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.48 £2.63

$0.83 ₺40.64

319.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$101 £76.0

$66.5 ₺3,273

51.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 £4.07

$1.35 ₺66.6

299.26%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.38 £1.79

$0.85 ₺42.05

180.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.80 £20.25

$10.86 ₺535

146.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.01 £1.52

$1.47 ₺72.3

36.73%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$38.0K £28.7K

$51.6K ₺2.5M

-26.42%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$40.6K £30.7K

$44.4K ₺2.2M

-8.67%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$318 £240

$89.2 ₺4,395

256.03%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$18.35 £13.87

$11.60 ₺572

58.19%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.75 £31.55

$16.10 ₺793

159.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.41 £35.07

$77.3 ₺3,805

-39.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.28 £13.82

$22.66 ₺1,116

-19.33%

Cinema Ticket

$13.28 £10.04

$8.34 ₺411

59.23%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$1,731 £1,308

$974 ₺48.0K

77.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.3K £16.8K

$25.8K ₺1.3M

-13.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$92.4 £69.9

$52.7 ₺2,597

75.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.27 £34.96

$39.16 ₺1,929

18.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 £76.5

$103 ₺5,083

-1.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 £76.7

$96.6 ₺4,759

5.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,321 £998

$994 ₺49.0K

32.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,086 £821

$629 ₺31.0K

72.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,158 £1,631

$2,024 ₺99.7K

6.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 £1,290

$1,155 ₺56.9K

47.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,523 £4,174

$3,160 ₺155.7K

74.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,320 £3,265

$1,838 ₺90.5K

135.08%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,264 £2,466

$1,203 ₺59.3K

171.18%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.32

41.09

-87.05%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for the United Kingdom: October 3, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

United Kingdom

$1.1K 44.3%

Istanbul

$629 41.2% 42.1% $457

Monthly Utilities & Internet

United Kingdom

$378 15.4%

Istanbul

$117 7.7% 69% $261

Eating Out

United Kingdom

$325 13.3%

Istanbul

$218 14.3% 33% $108

Groceries & Markets

United Kingdom

$305 12.4%

Istanbul

$264 17.3% 13.5% $41

Clothing & Footwear

United Kingdom

$154 6.3%

Istanbul

$131 8.6% 14.6% $22

Getting Around

United Kingdom

$132 5.4%

Istanbul

$75 4.9% 42.8% $56

Sport & Entertainment

United Kingdom

$73 3%

Istanbul

$94 6.1% 28.7% $21

Good to know

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

06:54 6:54 AM

08:54 8:54 AM

2 h ahead of the United Kingdom

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

67,326,569

15,701,602

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

100 TRY = 2.03 USD

100 TRY = 1.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 49.26 TRY (100 TRY = 2.03 USD). 1 EUR = 55.25 TRY (100 TRY = 1.81 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

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From you

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Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

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Cost of Living Comparison Between the United Kingdom and Istanbul

TRY, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

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United Kingdom

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